I 945 
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A.l<r B S S uSl -ST 



— ON — 



The Natural Habits and Mode of Destroying 



THE CURCULIO, 



DELIVERED BY 



■V57". :o. JrLJkJSrsOlSaL, 



ST. JOSEPH, . MICmaAIT 



Before the Berrien County Horticultural Association, 



FEBItTT-A.It'Sr SB, 1871. 



TiAVELBB POWBB PBIWT. St. ^OBephTKMl. 



Berrien County Pomological Society, 

The society met at the CoDo-"cgational 
Church ill Beuton Harbor, ou the 'loth \iU. 
A very large number of practical fruit 
growers were present. The erentofthe 
meeuug was the essay of \V. B. Ransom, 
Esq., ou the curculio. It was received 
with great satisfaction and the society 
immediately passed a unr.ninious vote of 
thanks, and resolved, to print au edition of 
1000 copies in pamphlet form for general 
distribution. The following is the copy of 
the esjbay : 

icss.vY ox Tin-; crucur.io. 
Jlr. J'residcnt ; Ladies and (Jenlle- 
men of the Associailon — At your request 
I will pre-sent the Icnowlodge I have ob- 
tained during the last two yeai's, concer- 
ning a little- darkish, snouted beetle, 
known by practical fruit growers as tlie 
" curculio." This little insect, which des- 
troys such a large portion of fruit in the 
United States, resembles iu shape when 
curled up, a gx-apo or raisin seed ; it looks 
very much like a dead plum or peach bud, 
and is from a fourth to a sixth of an inch 
in lengtli, varying much iu size. 

This is the insect which practical fruit 
growers have to contend with. By prac- 
tical, I mean those who are av,-are of the 
desk-uctivo habits of this insect enemy of 
our fruits, and who diligently apply all 
known remedies to itrf destruction. It is 
known, or called usually by unpracti-cal 
fruit throwers, who learnedly talk of its 
habits, its mode of operation, and of many 
kinds of preventives, as the 'Mvurkuloo." 
Most of these persons never saw one, nor 
could tell the insect if shown them. An 
individual of this class, (and a prominent 
man of Berrien county,) came to me last 
summer to tell me a secret he had found 
out about the " kurkuloo." He said a 
little fly, the bees, or something laid 
an Q.gg in the blossom, and when the fruit 
grew, it covered it up, so tliat it hatched 
a worm which destroyed the fruit. Won- 
derful discovery ! Like .iiany of the 
preventives iu vogue. ' 



Another class of persons write fine 
.scientific descriptions of the curculio, give 
it high sounding names in Latin, describe 
its species, genera, order and habits to 
some extent. Riley calls it " Contrach- 
cvhis nenupher." Faber calls it '•' Rhyncha- 
euus nenupher."' They tell many things 
useful, and many that practical fruitgrow- 
ers have no faith or confidence in. In 
fact very many things said only serve to 
lead us estray. These satans give too 
much theory and not enough of their own 
experience and practical knowledge. Hor- 
ticultural and agricultural papers are full 
of the silliest remedies and preventives 
imaginable. The consequence is, we look 
to remedies as preventives instead of tak- 
ing the book of nature, open daily in our 
orchards to study tiieir natural habits, and 
thereby discover the "easy and natural 
mode of their destruction. 

Of all the modes yet discovered to save 
our fruit, none is found efficient but /i-iMijjgf 
the beetles and larvae. So far as offen- 
sive odors are concerned, either ou, 
around, or undor the trees, saving the 
fruit, we may just a.s well whistle " Yan- 
kee Doodle," or " Hail Columbia." The 
quicker we discard all preventives but 
death, the ooonor will we come to the 
practical safeguard to our fruit. The en- 
tiro extinction of the species is not at 
once to be thought of; but what I call 
practical fruit growers, can and will keep 
the curculio in check so aa to be rewaj-ded 
for their labor and diligence iu using 
those means which aro now known to 
capture and destroy them. That there 
will be a class of drones, who will leave 
tins work undone, we may expect ; but 
this should not lessen our efforts. It 
should increase them. 

The different methods for curculio des- 
trictiou embrace, First, that of trapping 
under small pieces of bark, blocks, or 
anything flat with a surface of from two 
to four inches placed around the collar of 
the tree, after making the ground cImii 
and smooth, so that the curculio can find 
no other covert near the tree. Most of 
you practiced this mode of destruction 
last year to a considerable extent, with 
satisfactory resulis. Your experience was 
sucli as to disprove the entomologist's as- 
sertion, that '• they could only be taken in 
limited numbers, when the nights Avere 
cool, and before the trees were in bloom 
and foliage." Although the curculio 



were not all takcu in this waj, it lias l)oea 
said to me by intelligent I'ruit growers, 
that more were killed last year in tliis 
way (notwithstanding the lateness of its 
discovery), than all that had ever been 
killed in this fruit rcgioM from the first, 
by all other means. 

Second, the jarring process, wherein a 
large sheet is held or spread under a tree, 
then, striking the limbs with a rub])er 
mallet of two or three pounds weight, the 
eurculio are jarred down and afterwards 
killrd. Some have the sheet stretched ou 
a frame, to be carried and struck against 
the tree ; and another mode of jarring is 
ft kind of umbrella frame covered with 
cloth, and run on a whed against a tree. 
This is known as Dr. Hull's machine. — 
Gen. Ward, of Benton Harbor, has a cur- 
euho catcher, which is said to be far su- 
]>erior to Dr. Hull's. Although th^ise ma- 
chines will catch great nunibers of the 
insects, there are many objections to 
them. First, the expense of using them ; 
second, the danger of marring the trees 
in order to use them efficiently in jarring 
thocurculio off; third, with any amount 
of force in striking the trunk of the tree, 
only a portion of the eurculio will be 
jarred off, as I have tested by using a 
mallet on the limbs immediately after 
itriking the tree with a bumping catcher. 
I caught almost twice as many. 

The only other mode is by thoroughly 
destroying the larvae by picking no^the 
fallen wormy fruit, or letting hogs run in 
the orchard and make pork or trichina of 
them before they get to be hard shells or 
get "iheir bank 7/^;." This method will 
be effective in destroying thousands a 
year before they can do us any damage. 

The eurculio are quite continuous in 
feeding. Beginning immediately after 
emerging from the ground, about the last 
of July, tho eurculio commence feeding 
and continue even as hito as October.— 
They will feed on peaches, blackberries, 
quinces, and probably any kind of fruit 
during tho latter part of the season. One. 
or all of these modes combined, will be 
the price paid in a short time for all the 
fruit ripened where the eurculio has 
gained in numbers as in this region, in 
Southern Illinois, and in many other 
places. I am told that at Cleveland it is 
nearly impossible to raise a cherry, free 
from this well-known Turkish croscent 
!-iark. Every fruit grower who aeglocts, 



in this fruit raising vicinity, to destroy 
this insect thoroughly, is doing a wrong 
to others, and should be branded with the 
crescent mark on his forehead which Cain 
had on his, and he should bo driven out 
to feed like one of old on the grass of the 
field like the ox, and his lips should never 
touch our luscious fruits. 

To my mind some or all of tliese 
moihods are necessary to success in sav- 
ing our fruits from this little hlaclc snouted 
cvss, (I do not speak profanely of him, 
but reverently), 1 mean accursed, as ihe 
flaming sword was to guard the fruit of 
Eden. It is said by persons who have 
lived in the St. Joseph fruit region from 
tlie time the fi.rst peach trees were plant- 
ed, that the apricot, necterine, j^lum and 
all stone fruits grown here then, wei'c fair 
and free from the puncture of the eurculio 
as the fruit of Paradise. 

Now, with all our efforts, it is thought 
by good judges (and I have asked the 
opinion of many competent fruitgrowers) 
that we lose from one half to two-thirds of 
our fruit crop when the season favors 
anything less than a full general crop. A 
gentleman remarked to me a few days 
ago, that last year ho noticed many orch- 
ards which set a fiiir crop, but the fruii 
kept disappearing like ;!ie summer dews, 
till there was nonft lef'. 

If wc were more thorough in eurculio 
destruction, it would save Chicago the 
expense of sending her proposed mission- 
aries among us, to convert us from send- 
ing them early, ''Hale's early," that are 
"jomev/hat peculiar." Lot us attend to 
this missionary labor among ourselves, 
and Chicago go forth with her exuberant 
feeling of love to the poor " heathen Chi- 
nee." 

Mr. Elliot tells us, whca he published 
his book on fruit in 18.51, that the eurcu- 
lio had not been known in the west but a 
few years ; while now its numbers are 
legion. It swarms on our fruit almost 
like the locusts of Egypt. For tho i)asi 
fifty years horticulturists have been look- 
ing for a preventive to their ravages. Po- 
mologists have inquired for varieties of 
fruit which eurculio would not touch, or 
sonic application to the tree to make it 
offensive to them, so as to compel them to 
leave the finit in disgust. Notwithstand- 
ing the eurculio have a preference for 
fruit of particular varieties and kinds, 
they are not remarks,bly fastidious. Their 



3 



snout was made to drill fruit and it must 
do it. It must work at some kind of fruit 
if not as agreeable to them as others. — 
They cannot be idle. 

Having read everything my eye ever 
lit upon about the curculio, for the last 
thirty yoai's, it is absolutely astonishing 
how much has bci^n written on the sub- 
ject and to how little purpose. 

Except the three methods I have spok- 
en of as means of destroying them, 
nothing better ever has been discovered. 
The many recipes, preventives and meth- 
ods to save our fruit arc innumerable. — 
An old preventive was to cut down the 
trees, with the remark ''I never get any 
fruit." This, instead of killing the de- 
stroyer, killed the tree. This was effect- 
ual. I do not believe anything but death 
will stop that horny snout from piercing 
into our young stone fruits. It is amus- 
ing to see what is written as succe^ises in 
saving a crop of fruit, the many r«cipes 
given are supremely ridiculous. 

For instance, »prinklino; Paris green 
under and on the trees ; sprinkling dust, 
lime, sulphur, salt, in the trees ; throwing 
with a syringe whale oil soap on the trees; 
liquid manure, etc., etc. ; bags of salt put 
in the forks of the trees ; tolaacco water •, 
sweet elder branches hung in the trees ; 
assafootida; phospliorus ; tar around the 
trees ; tarred shingles hung in the branch- 
es , cotton batting tied around the body 
of the trees to prevent their crawling up ; 
as though their wings were made for orna- 
ments and not for use. Some have re- 
commended plowing them in ; spading 
tneni in ; pillug large piles of stouo around 
the trees ; paving under the trees, etc. — 
A hundred of such remedies I might con- 
tinue to mention, of equal sense and of 
etiual value. While all these panaceas 
only delude the experimenter and keep 
him from efficient means of destruction, 
the curculio enjoys them as a pcrfumei-y 
olForcd only to his highest sense of en- 
joyment as a co-worker in the perfumery 
art, in its elevating and refining inliuenco 
upon his race. Nothing short of the ilam- 
ing sword of death, severing the joints 
and the marrow of them is of any utility, 
or efficiency. 

I admit that cultivating and passing 
around the trees frequently, putting 
chickfiu coops under the trees or moving 
around the ti-oes often disturbs them in a 
measure, and may to some extent save a 



portion of the fruit. Hens rooating m 
the trees is perhaps as good as anytliing 
but death on them, from the fact the cur- 
culio operate almost exclusively by 
night. Fowls oidy disturb, but do not 
destroy Ihem, by roosting on the trees. 

Some one has proposed to raiso trees 
on little islands so the fruit stung VTOuld 
ffiU in the water. This only would destroy 
the larvae, and the same could be done by 
picking up the fallen fruit ; though it ia 
claimed they will not attack the fruit thua 
exposed to the water because instinct 
governs them to preserve their larvae ; 
but this practice of planting trees would 
be "wholly impracticable to any extent. 

It is known that the peach, containing 
tho larvae, put into barrels of water will re- 
main weeks without destroying them, be- 
cause when afterwards emptied they be- 
come active and enter the ground. 
The custom was to pick up the fallen 
wormy fruit and empty it in the river. — 
But observation discovered the fact that 
the peaches lined the shore of the river 
and lake, where many of the larvae un- 
doubtedly enter tho ground, and come 
forth transformod to prey the next year on 
our fruit. I put some apples in a breed- 
ing jar last summer to let the larvae ma- 
ture, in order to breed them to the perfect 
beetle. The appleg decayed some where 
cut. and discharged some liquid in tha 
bottom of the jar with the sweat of the 
apples. Two larvae came out and I let 
them lie in the liquid a week or two till 
apparently dead, bleached white. One 
day I took them and put them on some 
earth, and after some time they b«carao 
somewhat dry and very soon went frcely 
into the ground. I put some into a jar 
Sept. 21st, and Sept. 29th the larvae had 
his wing process deyelopcd ; Oct. 16th 
wings and legs were formed, the beetle 
colored and quite hard, but not come out 
of the cavity where he transformed, I 
will here say that all the curculio I bred 
from apples were the common plum cur- 
culio. I do not know of having ever seen 
any of Dr. Hull's "anthonomus quadri- 
gibbus," or apple curculio. 

We have never carefully and thorough- 
ly enough studied the natural habits and 
rules of international law of this Turkish 
Mahamcdau emperor. We know we pay 
tribute as a Christian people to his ma- 
jesty. A tribute more excessive than is 
paid to any monarch on the globe. Yet ; 



' destroy morp cnrcnlio than any other yet 
discovered. There arc many here to-day 
who have used all other means, that can 
bear testiinoiiy to its efficiency and suc- 
cess. 

Iilutomologists I hin'hly appreciate as 
men, and their general beueiit as eo-as- 
asistants to horticnlturists ; but to pro- 
claim the futility of this mode of destroy- 
ing the curculios in the face Okf facts in 
this vicinity, weakens the faith of plebian 
horticulturists in scientific entomologists. 
Thousands, and perhaps millions, of cur- 
culios wore destroyed by this simple Avay 
last year, and we hope billions will per- 
ish in the same way the coming year it 
there are as many in Berrien county. 

My friend, Dr, 'Hull, who came here 
after the first discovery and saw these in- 
sects taken from landor the traps in large 
numbers, went home and made a few ex- 
periments, and then wrote several Col- 
umns to show that the traps were of little 
value, contrasting the result of his curcu- 
ho catcher and his traps set. ITe drew 
the conclusion that the sheet or catcher 
must be used, and if used at all, the fruit 
grower might as well wait and catch them 
all at once. "J'his reminds me of the man 
who had his wife cook his supper, bre-ak- 
fast and dinner for the next day, at even- 
ing, and let him eat it at supper, so as 
not to be bothered the next day. I shall 
only further say of the exhaustive article 
of the Doctor, which considers tlie trap- 
ping process as labor lost ; that thousands 
can be killad before the catcher would bo 
used and this multitude be desti'oyed be- 
fore they can do any damage at all. 

Wo did not expect success iu Dr. Hull 
by working the orchard. They crawl [or my friend Riley, (though I think highly 
with great rapidity and when they reach of them), for this process of catching 
the tree during the day, until just at curculio with traps was new to them, and 
evening — very few will ascend the tree if they were not expected to be "experts." 
they can find a hiding place near it. JThls was practical entomology ; science 

This mode of capturing them the past! was their profession. Dr. Hull said when 



we pay — pay — pay year after 3'ear, with 
careless supineuess of theorizing reme- 
dies. He Jakes of our wealth asking no 
questions for conscience sake, (if con- 
science a ''Turk" has), with a Mahame- 
dan's rights, over a Christian j^eople ;^and 
the most wc say or do is, when we are 
feathered together iu full numbers as to- 
aav, and out of his presence ; — ''tlic Utile 
Turk r 

We now want tc marshal our forces, 
learn all his habits and rules of warfare, 
and to a man compel his surrender. — 
Proclaim our rights to our domain — say, 
"millions for defense but not one j^racA 
for tribute." 

It is known in this community that I 
made the xkw discovery last year of trap- 
ping tlism under small pieces of bark, 
blocks, bits of boards, lath, chips, stones, 
pieces of bricks, bunches of matted 
leaves, corn cobs, or anything with a flat- 
tish surface from two to four inches square 
placed around the collar of the trees on 
the ground after making it level and 
smooth to the distance of three or four 
feet from the tree ; or if smooth and clean 
for a larger distance, so much the bettei'. 
The object of making the groand clean 
and smooth is, that they may find no hid- 
ing place but the trajis or cover's pre- 
pared for them. 

The curculio is jfrincipally a noc- 
turnal insect in its habit of 
feeding and depositing it:; «.2'gs. 
They move comparatively but little 
during the day except to crawl on the 
ground, and when iu the orchard, under 
its rubbish, will crawl toward the trees 
during the day ; especially when disturbed ^ 



season was highly satisfactory to persons 
who properly ])repy.red the ground and 
traps, except to a, few savaus who have 
spent years in instructing us on their hab- 
its and the mode of destroyiiig thein. — 
The only crotchet iu their mind that I am 



here examining the discover^', that he or 
no one else ever heard of curculio being 
deslroyed ])y such means. But with duo 
deference to my friend Prof. Riley, who 
says that they could only be caught in my 
traps ''early iu the spring before the trees 



able to perceive, is that the most efEcIsnt were iu bloom, when the nights were cool 
way to destroy the curculio was discover- and the days AvariRs :" 1 would earnestly 
ed by a fruit groAver, and not by a pro- say, that we, here in Michigan respect- 
fessional ; and I am bold to assert, not- fully dissent from such hasty conclusion, 
withstanding the warning notes of these Such advice and theory is disproved here, 
savans, that this mode will, if followed, as much as his claiming that fruit grow- 



ers "wei'i"! under Laslinn- ol)lif:;alion" to me 
for the discovery, while still attributing it 
to Mrs. Wiersjwho accidentally found some 
curculio gathered under lumber placed iu 
the vicinity ot" some plum trees, (we are 
not told how near, nor of any preparation 
of the ground,) and in the course of two 
weeks caught the enormous number ot 
IGl, which a small toad could catch and 
swallow in fifteen minutes, and still sit 
and wink for his lunch. But we catch 
with little bits of bark, etc., two to four 
inches square, iu two or three hours. 
thousands. 

Now, how can Prof. Riley claim for 
Mrs. VViers the discovery of this process, 
while she only related the iiact of finding 
them under the boards without stating 
how near the trees, not even suggesting 
the putting of the boards, (we may sup- 
pose 12 feet long and a foot perhaps 
wide) near the tree or j)rcparing the 
ground. She simply' pui it in the vicinity. 
having occasion to use it. 

It is, and always has boon known, that 
Mr.s. WIers' suggestion was no practical 
discovery, or like our method of trappini; 
them ; and what she found in regard to 
catching never suggested anything but a 
lumber pile, and that new boards. This 
was before the trees were iu bloom. No- 
body heard auy more of it until our dis- 
covery, then i'rof. Riley brought it up. — 
In liis exhaustive report to the Missouri 
and Illinois Horticultural Societies, as to 
the ultima thula of curculio destruction, 
he not only discarded it, but rJl methods 
except jarring, hogs, and picking up the 
fallen wormy fruit. Here we join issue. 
Michigan may use all of these, but not 
solely ; we will use the traps whatever 
else we use. 

Last year I used nothine: but traps, and 
proved to my satisfaction their superiority 
over the jarring process. But there is no 
objection to using tnij^s, catchers. sJiects, 
any and all means that will destroy a 
single curculio. Let all these be used! 
Do not discard any means that kills a sin- 
gle curculio ! 

This method of trapping was published 
from east to west, from north to south 
over the Union — in two weeks time, and 
tried as an experiment in all parts. — 
Where the preparation was proper and 
not too late iu the season, persons de- 
stroyed the beetles in large numbers. In 
this vicinity it was very satisfactory, I 



h^Lve rocoived the highest testimony of its 
success, while Mrs. Wiers' discovery was 
still-born, and buried without a christen- 
ing ceremony or name. It was only resur- 
rected to take from'aspiring entomologists 
the cloud of surprise that all horticultu- 
rists expressed, that thej had not before 
discovered so simple a remedy. Pro). 
Riley's experiment was no better than Dr. 
Hull's with traps; from his experience 
and practice he warns all his Michigan 
friends against any confidence iu them. 
This is gratuitous advice. It would be 
good if true ! '\Vc have, however, learned 
by practice, to put faith in curculio traps. 
Sincerity or pride might have prompted 
this advice to destroy our confidence in 
this successful mode of capture. Last 
year curcuHos wei'e killed by thousands 
and hundreds of thousands, yet the major- 
ity who used the traps began late in thc» 
season. My curculio crop amounted to 
over 40,000 bj actual count, and mostly 
from 400 trees. It was thought gener- 
ally a better year for curculio than 
peaches. 

In i868 the crop of peaches shipped 
from this port was about 52o,000 bask- 
ets. In ]«f;0 about 750,000. In 1870 
about 157,000. In 1868 and 1809, I 
jarred the trees, using a sheet as other.s 
did. In 1870 I used nothing but the 
"Rauso:n method," as my friend Riley 
terms it. 

Now compare the number of baskets of 
1870 with those of 18G9, and the crop will 
be seen to be from one-sixth to one-sev- 
enth ; but my crop last year, 1870. fell 
only a little short of half as many as in 
1SG9, and was as large as in ISOS, (when 
I used a sheet,) into 102 baskets ; while 
the ratio of 1868 to 1869 was about five- 
sevenths as many. I had about half, as 
many in 1870, when there was only about 
one-seventh as many as in 1869, and my 
Late Crawfords bore well. En 1870 the 
freeze of April IGth, we all know, killed 
most of the early and late CraAvfords, so 
that I had no Crawfords to raise the re- 
lative proportion of the two years. 

Now, why was my crop about half as 
large in 1870 as the year before, with a 
full crop of Crawfords, while the general 
last year's crop averaged only about one- 
seventh? 1 know of no reason except 
the faithful attention I gave from about 
May 1st to July, in trappiugthe curculio. 
From the faith I had in the RfTicioncv of 



«; 



t-his method, and the want of faith among 
some prominent horticulturists, and the 
discouraging manner they spoke and wrote 
of it, I raised my back a la curculio to 
fully test its efficiency. 

To show the result of this coufideuco, 
and to put all theorizing at rest, I will 
here state my most careful investigations 
and experience as to the loss of my last 
year's crop by the curculio. From previ- 
ous statements it will be seen that my 
crop of 1870 bore about fifty per cent. 
ratio to the large crop of 186!), while the 
ceueral ratio of last year was only about 
one-seventh of 18G9. 

I carefully picked from the ground and 
from the trees during the entire season, 
all wormy and blasted fruit. I cut this 
fruit carefully by hundreds to form as 
accurate an estimate as possible of the 
per cent of the wormy to blasted peaches. 
I counted at different times the number 
of these peaches in a basket. I estimated 
that for the season an average of 2,400 
of these small peaches filled a basket. I 
picked the very smallest. I found the 
basket averaged about one half wormy 
and one-half blasted. Reducing all of 
those picked up to baskets, gave mo the 
number of peaches destroyed by the cur- 
culio. Allowing 125 good fair ripe peach 
es as the average of a basket, gave me 
the number of baskets lost by curculio. 
The result was, (making estimates large' 
onough) 257 baskets. In this estimate 1 
was exceedingly careful, and I think I 
fully covered the loss, which I think was 
tribute enough to the curculio ; 257 bask- 
ets at one dollar per basket is $257. That 
was my last year's tax collected by his 
Mahamedan highness- 

I will leave others to figure up and take 
their receipts for custom dues to his im- 
perial majesty. I have asked a large 
number of fruit growers what per cent, of 
last year's peach crop they thouj^ht was 
destroyed by the curculio. None say less 
than halt, many, very inany, two-thirds. — 
With these estimates I agree as to the 
general crop. Some, however, lost all 
their peaches by the curculio. The 
peaches were saved in the ratio of the 
diligence used in destroying the curculio. 

Now if half the crop was destroyed by 
them in 1870, and peaches brought $1 
per basket, they destroyed $157,000 
worth of peaches. If two-thirds were 
destroyed, this fruit region paid tribute to 



them last year of .$314,000. I simply 
ask can we afford to pay it ? I answer 
no. If there is any way to redress this 
evil, let us do it. 

I am not speaking of any curculio but 
the one that attacks our cherries, peach- 
es, and plums, and, so far as 1 know, the 
same one attacks our apples ; for 1 have 
bred several from apples the past year, 
and they are all conoirachadas, and not 
of the quadrigibhus species. There are 
a hundred kindred species of snout beetles 
that are puncturing all fruits and nuts. — 
One species last year destroyed all the 
black walnuts on the rivers and streams 
in Kansas. Every species haij its pre- 
dilection for fruit. 

Last year, the first and second days of 
May were warm, and brought the curculio 
from their hibernating places. Being on 
the watch for them, I began to study their 
habits, and gained a point in advance of 
what I learned the previous year. I ex- 
amined in the cracks and crevices of the 
ground near the trees, and found them 
hid away. I then searched under loave.s, 
sticks, and lumps of dirt. There I found 
them. This gave me the hint to save 
them the trouble of looking up a lodging 
place for themselves, so I smoothed down 
the ground and put down traps of various 
kinds and sizes until I found traps »; suc- 
cess. I will here again say, that to suc- 
ceed, the ground must be made sraootJi 
and clean, so as to give them no hiding 
place near the tree but the traps. The 
majority do not fly after enteriag the or- 
chard, but remain on the ground during 
the early part of the season, except as 
they ascend the trees on warm nights to 
feed, and descend for shelter in the morn- 
ing. 

During this part of the season, I dis- 
covered no difference in any kind of traps 
if properly put around the tree. After 
the weather became warm, but few were 
found under stones or pieces of briek. I 
have used everything for a trap as an ex- 
periment. I like pieces of old dead black 
oak bark, from two to four inches square. 
Take that which has fallen off and worn 
the ross and little fibrous bark off, so as 
to have no cracks in it for the curculio to 
hide in. One side is concave, the edges 
are generally uneven, so that when put up 
to the tree they give holes for the beetle 
to crawl under next to the tree whenjdesc- 
ending. This hollow in the inner side 'of 



the bark, when placed on the smooth I most of them uudor the traps. To test 
,i,ri-ound, gives a sufficient vacnmn for the matter whether they feed uio-hts onlv 

and went down in the raorning-, M'hioh I 



tiiem to attach themselves to the bark and 
just clear the ground, which they seom to 
prefer. The traps want but a small 
space beneath, say a quarter of an inch, 
and all the edges close to the ground, only 
just so that a curculio can crawl under 



had observed them doing frequently, the 
sun half an hour or so high. I went thro' 
the orchard to about a hundred trees, 
at () o'clock P. M., and found from five to 
ten to the traps of each tree. Then again 



iu several places. I prefer bark because about dusk I took my lantern and went 
it has a concave side, and does not warp to rows of trees alongside of those whare 
with the sun, while most other traps warp I found them before sundown, and cxam- 
and leave the edges too high and the cen- j ined' about the same unmbor of traps and 
tre too close to the ground. Lath, blocks, i found only one curculio. Then the noxt 
chips, bits of boards, (unless of the size morning at sunrise, I went to the same 
we may suppose Mrs. Weirs' were, viz : | tree.? I visited with the lantern and found 
building lumber), are either eouvex or [ from five to ten under the traps of each 
warp with the sun and raise the edges, tree. To see if lights would attract tliem 



thus bringing the centre to the ground 
Observation and experience will teach 
any one to succeed. The traps must all 
be set over after a rain, as it closes t-ho 
edrjos with dirt washed up around them. 

I followed the traps daily from the iirst 
of May to the first of July. There were 
l)ut few days that I did not catch curculio 
.vteadily. On June 23d, 24th and 25th, I 
caught about as many as any days after 
the lint week's trapping, and more than 
on any but three or four davs. On the 
23d, 2;)8; on the 24th, 3Gl' The ther- 
mometer ranged from 9()° to 104°. These 
curculio I am sui'c were uot that year's 
l)rood. Some things I think I settled 
definitely about their habits. 

On their first appearance in the spring 
they are active, nightly feeders, 
if it is sufficiently warm. They ap- 
pe:>r in the orchard as soon as it is 
warm enough to start the leaves and fruit 
buds. They feed voraciously ou warm 
nights 'on the tonder starting leaves. — 
AVhen it is eold they do not feed. Thay 
ascend the trees just at evening and 
descend in the morning to find hiding 
|)lacos ou the ground. JV lew will be 
I'ound on the underside of the lateral 
limbo. They will principally hide under 
the nearest covert to the tree, Very i'Qw 
remain on the tree. 

When the trees arc in full foliage cur- 
culios will not all descend every day ; but 
they travel a good deal except Avheu the 
female is laying eggs fast and is sluggish. 
When not found under the traps daily, go 
tlirough the orchard v/ith a rubber nuillet 
and jar the trees thoroughly as with a 
sheet, and let the beetles fall on the 
ground. la the afteruoou you will have 



I spent several warm nights until 10 or 

II o'clock burning bright fires with small 
brush ; most other insects were attracted, 
but uot a curculio, not one ! 

They probably, when under the traps, 
remain there during the day, so that per- 
haps it is well to examine them in the 
afternoon, and especially later iu the 
season when ij; may be beat to jar the 
trees in the morning, and then give them 
time to crawl under before examining tho 
traps. 

The curculio begau here last year to 
deposit their eggs in about throe weeks 
from their first appear.->uec, or from May 
20th to the 22d. The first peaches I found 
from which the larvae had escaped was 
from June 28th to the 2Gth. I put the 
larvae into a breeding jar June 2Gth ; 
they iiufnedialely entered the ground. — 
Cetwceu July 20th and 2(]th the beetles 
began to come out. They usually pass 
from twenty to thirty days in the ground ; 
the majority from twenty to twenty-five 
days. It thus stands very nearly : May 
20th they begin depositing their eggs ; 
June 20th the larvae begin entering the 
ground ; July 20th the first beetles begin 
to come out of the ground. 

Last year but few if any ])eachcs were 
punctured by the curculio after the first 
of July. Not later than July Gth I am 
sure, if really as late as that. The only 
ripe peaches we find many worms in are 
Hale's Early, which began to ripen Au- 
gust 1st, and there are no peaches found 
with worms in of consequences after a 
week or ten days' picking, and these con- 
tain larvae nearly mature. This, allow- 
ing four weeks for them to mature in the 
peach, shows they do not deposit eggs 



much if any aflei' July 1st. Tlieu, the 
more succuleut and ripe the peach, the 
longer they remain in it, and the larger 
the larvae grows. 

This settles beyond all doubt to my 
mind that ■we are cursed with only one 
good healthy, active working crop of cur- 
culio a year. I have no doubt but all 
curculio larvae perfect the beetle state 
and leave the ground the same year, no 
matter what time they enter the ground. 
I know it is thought the majority remain 
in the ground till the next spring. 1 be- 
lieve evoi'y one transforms tlio same sea- 
son. I kept them as late as Sept. 21st, 
before letting them enter the ground, and 
Oct. IGth an examination showed the 
perfect beetle, black but not yet emerged 
from the transforming cavity. About 
June 25th I put dry hard little peaches 
containing larvae in a jar without dirt or 
moisture. They will not die for a long 
time. They will not transform except in 
the earth. Jlany of these I kept till into 
September. During the summer 
I took larvae at different tunes from this 
jar and examined them, and put them in 
earth, from which as usual they Avent 
through the transformation in • 20 to 30 
days. All the oM horticultural vvorX's, as 
well as many horticulturists, now think 
they remain in the ground until the next 
."spring. This is disproved beyond a doubt 
to my mind. The number of eggs a 
single female will deposit in one season 
remains unknown so 'ar as my knowledge 
goes. 

As to their hiberuatinglocality, or place 
they have tlse mastery of me. I have 
prepared wliat I supjjosed were attractive 
places ia my orchard lor them, and day ■ 
after day examined them with care, and ; 
also other places, late last fall and this ; 
wiuter, but aai yet ignorant of where the ! 
beetles pass the winter, except what oth' | 
ers say ; of which I am very distrustful. [ 
J From the testimony of many it seems that | 
they gather ia numbers in old stumps, | 
logs, and under the bark of trees or tim- j 
ber. But this thing needs further inves- j 
tigation. If true it may give some furth- j 
er clue to their future destruction. . i 

Perhaps I should speak of l^-of. Riley's j 
parasites of which he has wriiten. I have i 
seen them and tried hours to have cne j 
feast on a good fa^ curculio egg, fnim i 
which he turned continuously, iis much as 1 



to say: No, Ilhank you sir. And as to 
his selling Illinois fruit growers next year 
a parasite that destroys the mature lar- 
vae, I fear he has stolen my thunder — 
When he was here in last June, I showed 
him the parasite larvae, which was new 
to him, and he requested me to breed 
some. 

I can furnish him a pair noiv lo go into 
their piopagation in advance of waiting 
until nextsummerto supply Illinois horti- 
culturists at $1 or $2 a pair. Michigan 
will };eep under her curculios with the 
Ransom traps if we attend to it as wu 
should. I have here in this vial some of 
the* perfect fly of this new ''Michigan" 
parasite, so that when Prof. Riley begins 
to sell, you maj' all know it in advance of 
his sending them forth to the world claim- 
ing its discovery. Thislittlc wasp-like fly 
as you will see its ovipositor can rcaoli 
the curculio larvae in the peach and de- 
posit an egg on it, which grow together 
until the parasite larvae kills the curculio 
larvae, and then furnishes itself a cocoon 
and transforms in the same peach. 1 
bred large numbers last year. If they 
should increase much, they will be of 
3ome use to us in killing the cui-culio 
larvae; unless we export them to Missouri, 
Illinois or somewhere else so ,as to have 
a short supply here. There are many 
things remaining of much importance, 
Avhich I have not time to present; as I 
have already trespassed long on A-our pa- 
tience. 'Discoveries remain to be made as 
to their natural habits. Do they live o<i 
from year to year ? Hoav maay eggs does 
a single female lay ? What length of time 
is consumed in laying? Avhere do they 
hibernate ? Let these be fully .settled. 
Is it knoAvn certainly that birds eat the 
beetles? Do hens or chickens eat the 
beetles ? I think toads do, although I 
am not positive. We all need to study fur- 
ther the habit of this little insect. Lot 
the name curculio, which sounds from 
Maine to Florida, from the Atlantic coast 
to tke Rocky mountains: Avhich echoes 
from the valley, from the plijin, and from 
the mountain, tops, be the tocsin note in 
the ears of every fruit groAver, to ari6-elike 
the angel of death and sicear that his 
crescent mark, shall be the insignia of his 
doom ; that the curculio shall be no more. 
That owv J air fruits shaH lilush in the sun 
beams Avithout his unhallowed touch. 



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